A Day in the Life of What Might Have Been
by dare-denymecider
Summary: What if Jen and Gibbs hadn't parted after Paris? What if their lives took a totally different turn? 2 part fluff based on a day in the life of the Gibbs family. Jenny no longer works for NCIS. JIBBS ****CHAPTER 2 NOW UP****PLEASE REVIEW****
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: No copyright infringement of any kind intended**

**Rating: T**

**A/N: I thought I was out of ideas but this one just popped up…courtesy of Starbucks again ;) This is a 2-part piece….if you want to read the second part, please review and let me know. Enjoy. Em x**

"Mommy!"

"What is it, baby?" Jenny called from where she stood at the bottom of the staircase.

"I can't find Otimus Pwime," Joel whined as he rounded the corner and flopped down on the top step.

"Well, why don't I help you look for it when you get home from Kindergarten?"

"But I need it nowwwwwwwww, Mommy. It's my day for Show-and-Tell,"

Jenny sighed and glanced at her watch. They were already running behind schedule and while she didn't want to disappoint her son, she really didn't have the time to look for his action figure. "I'm sorry, Joel, but you'll just have to find something else to take. You've got lots of lovely toys. Why don't you go choose another while I get your breakfast ready?"

She watched him as he contemplated her suggestion. After a few seconds he let out a huge sigh and stood up, heading back to his bedroom to look for something that would impress his classmates as much as his _Transformer_ would have.

"Good boy," Jenny called after him, shaking her head and grinning. Of all the kids, Joel was the most like Gibbs. Not just with his dark hair and ice blue eyes but his personality as well. He showed the same determination as his father in everything that he did and the temperamental demeanor that on Gibbs could be quite intimidating to some, in her 4 year old son Jenny found it amusing.

Jen made her way back to the kitchen where Gibbs was sitting at the table with their two daughters. She reached into a cupboard and pulled out a cereal bowl, placing it on the table.

"Are you finished with those?" She asked Ellie, pointing to the box of _Cheerios_ that sat in front of her eldest daughter. The eight year old nodded and handed her mother the box.

"What was Joel shouting about?" Gibbs asked as he spooned another mouthful of baby cereal into his baby daughter's mouth, carefully scooping up the excess that she let escape and offering it to her again. It never ceased to amaze him how it could take half an hour just to feed her a tiny jar of food.

"He can't find his _Optimus Prime_ figure for Show-and-Tell so I told him to find something else," Jenny answered as she poured cereal into the bowl and topped it up with milk. She looked at her watch again. If Joel didn't hurry up he wasn't going to have time for breakfast. She leaned out the door into the hall and shouted.

"Come on, Joel, we're going to be late!"

"I'm here, mommy,"

She looked down to see him standing beside her. "How did you…? Never mind. Sit up at the table and eat your breakfast. We have to leave in 5 minutes,"

"Daddy, can Sarah come over to play this afternoon?" Ellie asked, before taking a sip of her orange juice.

"It's up to your mom, sweetie," he replied, wiping Molly's mouth with her bib and lifting her out of her highchair. He handed her to Jen. "She's the one who'll be supervising,"

"Can she, mom?"

"Well, I'll have to phone Sarah's mom but if it's okay with her then Sarah can stay for dinner tonight. How does that sound?"

"Thanks, mom!" she grinned.

Gibbs smiled as he surveyed his family. After Shannon and Kelly's deaths, he hadn't thought he'd ever feel this complete again but from the moment he met Jenny he knew it was possible to get a second chance at love. Ellie had been conceived while they were still undercover in Paris and they had married as soon as they returned home. She was born 5 months after they'd returned to the States and Gibbs had fallen in love with the tiny infant instantly. With her auburn hair and emerald eyes, she was a mirror image of her mother and as he'd watched her grow up, she only got more and more like Jenny.

Molly had been a surprise; the result of a night of passion and a miscalculation of the calendar on Jenny's behalf. All the same, they wouldn't be without her and at 7 months old she was the perfect combination of them both, curly auburn hair and pale blue eyes that sparkled whenever she got excited.

"You nearly ready, little man?" Jenny asked Joel who quickly spooned the last of his cereal into his mouth and pushed away the bowl in answer to his mother's question. "Okay, then. Let's go," Jen said, moving to strap Molly into her baby seat. No sooner had she clicked the buckle shut than the little girl spit up on herself.

"Oh Shi….oot," Jenny sighed, catching herself before little ears could take notice of her curse. "I'll have to change her,"

"I'll do it. You take the kids to school and I'll take Molly into the office. You can come pick her up when you're done," Gibbs offered, seeing the look of gratitude sweep across his wife's features.

"Have I told you how wonderful you are?" Jenny kissed him on the cheek.

"Not nearly as often as you should," he teased, already unfastening the fussing baby from her seat.

"Come on, kids, let's get this show on the road," Jenny opened the door that led to the garage and held it open as Ellie and Joel kissed their father and followed her out to the car.

NCIS NCIS NCIS NCIS NCIS NCIS NCIS NCIS NCIS NCIS NCIS NCIS NCIS

"Have you got your toy for Show-and Tell?" Jenny asked as she helped Joel out of the car. He nodded and patted the side of his back pack. She watched him heave it up onto his shoulder with a little difficulty and she wondered just how many toys he'd brought with him to substitute for his missing toy. She made a mental note to look for the figure so that it was waiting for him when he got home.

"Okay, then. I'll pick you guys up later," She kissed each of them and watched them walk into the school grounds, Ellie holding protectively onto her little brother's hand. Jenny wondered how much longer they would stay like that before they were at each other's throats like most siblings.

_Hopefully not for a long time_, she thought, climbing into the car and heading off in the direction of NCIS.

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"I brought coffee," Jenny announced as she stepped off the elevator and into the bullpen. "Where's Gibbs?" she asked as she saw Tony holding her daughter as if she was a ticking bomb; Molly was eyeing him just as warily.

"He's in MTAC with the Director," Tony said, relief visibly washing over his face as Jenny set down the coffee on his desk and retrieved Molly from his arms.

"And what about everyone else?" she asked looking around at the empty desks.

"McGeek is down in the lab helping Abby crack some computer code or something and Ziva is at the dentist," Tony explained, tucking into one of the pastries Jenny had also brought with her. "Mmmmph, 's'good," he said, spraying crumbs everywhere.

"Honestly, Tony," Jenny teased, throwing him a napkin. "Even Joel has better eating habits than you,"

Tony just shrugged as Gibbs rounded the corner.

"Joel? Even Molly's got better manners than Tony," he remarked, grinning at Jenny. Tony opened his mouth to protest but only proceeded to make a bigger mess and so clamped his mouth shut.

"You get them dropped off in time?" Gibbs asked, turning to speak to his wife.

"No problems," Jenny smiled. At that moment her cell phone rang. "Could you…?" Gibbs reached into her purse and opened the phone, holding it up to her ear. "Jenny Gibbs….yes….what did he do?" She held out Molly for Gibbs to take and took the phone out of his hand. "I'll be right there," she sighed, closing the cell.

"What's wrong?" Gibbs asked with a concerned frown.

"That was Principal Morton. It seems Joel's got himself into a bit of trouble,"

"It's only 945am. What could he possibly have done in such a short time?"

"I guess I'm about to find out," she answered.

"I'm coming with you," Gibbs said.

"What about Molly? I want to have my full attention on what the Principal says,"

Gibbs handed Molly to Tony who instantly started to protest. Gibbs guided Jen towards the elevator.

"Walk her around a bit. She'll fall asleep," Jenny assured Tony as the elevator arrived and she and Gibbs stepped on. As the doors closed, they could still hear Tony's protestation and while she felt sorry for the young agent being left literally holding the baby, her mind was full of worry regarding her middle child and what trouble he'd gotten himself into.

**Want to read the rest? Just let me know x x x**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Firstly, thank you to everyone who sent such great feedback. It really spurs a writer on to know that there are people wanting to read their stories. And now I have to apologise. This whole part is pretty lame…especially the ending. And, the suspense created at the end of the last part regarding Joel doesn't exactly have a thrilling outcome in this chapter. However, I have tried my best to create a day in the life of their family and I hope that you all take it as it is intended…as a work of pure fluff fiction.**

**Enjoy. Em x**

"Mr and Mrs Gibbs," Principal Morton greeted them as they were shown into his office by his secretary, "Please, take a seat. I'm sorry to ask you to come in like this but I assure you we take this kind of incident seriously,"

"What incident might that be?" Jenny asked.

"Miss Thompson had to confiscate this from Joel at Show-and-Tell this morning," Principal Morton reached into a drawer and took something out, placing it on the desk before them. Gibbs instantly recognized it as the plane from his basement.

Jenny thought back to earlier that morning when she'd noticed Joel struggling with his backpack. No wonder he could barely carry it; the plane was made of heavy metal. Not to mention the fact that it sported a sharp blade on the bottom. Jenny blanched as she imagined what might have happened if the teacher had not confiscated the tool.

"Now, no one was hurt," she could hear the Principal saying, "but they could have been. We aren't going to punish Joel in any way here at the school but we'd appreciate it if you could speak to him at home and explain why he was wrong to bring something potentially dangerous into the school,"

"Of course," Gibbs said, standing to shake the Principal's hand. "I'm sorry he's caused you trouble today. I don't know what he was thinking bringing it with him,"

"He's a little boy, Mr Gibbs. Chances are he wasn't thinking at all, at least not about anything other than what his friends would think."

As soon as they had exited the school's gates, Jenny turned to face her husband.

"How many times have I told you to make sure that you don't leave your tools lying about?"

"I don't know how he got it, Jen. Everything is up out of his reach…" His voice trailed off as he remembered being called out to an investigation the night before and in his haste to get ready, he'd left the plane on his work bench. "Shit, Jen. I left it out last night. Still, Joel knows better than to go down to the basement alone and he certainly knows not to take something that doesn't belong to him,"

"We'll talk to him tonight; think of some kind of suitable punishment for him. It could have been a lot worse," she added quietly, thinking of the guns Gibbs kept in the basement. He knew what she was thinking and immediately grew defensive.

"I ALWAYS make sure they're locked away. I would NEVER put our children in danger like that!"

Jenny reached out a hand and touched it to his arm.

"Hey," she soothed, "I know you wouldn't,"

They stood like that for a few moments before heading back to the car.

"I'll pick up Molly and then I'm going to the store," Jen said as Gibbs drove them towards NCIS.

"Okay," Gibbs replied absently, still pissed at himself for forgetting to put the plane away safely out of the reach of curious little hands. "Huh?" he asked, aware that Jenny was speaking to him.

"I asked if you needed anything from the store,"

"No. No, I'm fine," he replied, keeping his eyes on the road.

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" 'Fall asleep', my ass," they could hear Tony mutter as they exited the elevator. Jenny could see her daughter whimpering in Abby's arms, Tony obviously having recruited her to help with the baby.

"Boss, am I glad to see you!" Tony exclaimed as he spotted Gibbs and Jenny. "She won't stop crying,"

"We didn't do anything, I swear," Abby added, letting Gibbs take the little girl from her arms. He held her close to him, whispering into her soft auburn curls. She immediately stopped fussing, snuggling her head into the crook of her father's neck.

"Impressive, boss," Tony commented with admiration.

"They've just got to feel safe," Gibbs said, flashing Jenny a look, silently apologizing once more for the plane incident.

She nodded and took the baby from him, buckling her into her seat.

"Okay, then. Thank you, Tony. Abby. I'm going to go. I'll see you later and we'll talk to Joel together?" she asked Gibbs.

"I'll try to get home early," he assured her, walking her to the elevator and watching until the doors closed behind her.

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Jenny heaved the last of the groceries into the kitchen and set them down with the rest.

"Well, that's it," she said to Molly, who was sitting in her baby seat on the counter, contentedly gnawing on a ring of plastic keys. Jenny started to put away the groceries, opening and closing cupboards with practiced ease.

It had been difficult for her to adjust at first. She had happily given up work to look after Ellie, both she and Gibbs realizing how irresponsible it would be for both parents' lives to be at risk on a daily basis. Still, Jenny herself had had a privileged upbringing. Her home had been filled with love but also with a nanny and maids to cater to her at all times. Jenny had never had anyone depend on her before and now she had a husband and a baby. Ellie and Gibbs had been patient while she learned. Motherhood had come to her surprisingly easy, however, her husband had suffered through several years of burned food and singed clothing before Jenny had developed into the domesticated housewife she now was.

She suddenly remembered she had to call Sarah's mom to double check about her daughter's playdate. With her cell phone cradled between her shoulder and her chin, Jenny continued to unload the shopping while she spoke to Natasha, Sarah's mom.

"Since it's Friday, I was wondering how you'd feel about Sarah staying the night? I know Ellie would love to have her sleep over and I could take them both to ballet class in the morning,"

"Sounds ideal to me," Natasha agreed. "I'll need to pack a bag for Sarah so, if you'd like, I can pick up Ellie and Joel from school and drop them off at yours,"

Jenny hesitated. She'd told the kids she was picking them up and she'd drummed it into their heads that they should never accept a lift from anyone other than the people they knew were picking them up. But they knew Natasha so Jenny agreed and after a brief chat, hung up the phone.

She put the last item into the refrigerator and turned around, scooping her daughter up into her arms. She instantly wrinkled her nose as her daughter giggled.

"Think it's funny, do you?" Jenny asked the baby, kissing her pudgy cheeks. "Okay, stinky, let's get that diaper changed,"

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Jenny was folding laundry when she heard the front door bell. Before she could get to the door, it opened and Joel and Ellie barreled in, Ellie pulling Sarah in behind her.

"Whoa," she said, grabbing Joel and stopping the three of them from rushing past her, "you know the rules; shoes off at the door." The three kids quickly kicked off their shoes and disappeared up the stairs.

"Thanks for this," Natasha said, from where she stood on the doorstep.

"Not a problem," Jenny smiled, taking the overnight bag that the other woman held out to her and placing it on the floor next to the pile of discarded shoes.

"Any problems, you've got my number," Natasha said as she waved goodbye and headed back to her car. Jenny waited until she had driven off before closing the door. She bent down and paired up the shoes, leaving them in a neat row. She then took Sarah's case and climbed the stairs towards Ellie's bedroom. She knocked and stuck her head around the door. The girls were already hard at work setting up the doll house.

"Hi, girls,"

"Hi, mommy," Ellie smiled up at her mother.

"Hello, Mrs Gibbs," Sarah said shyly.

"Come downstairs when you're ready and I'll get you a snack," Jenny said before shutting the door and leaving them to it. She moved down the hallway towards Joel's room. The door was open and she watched as he walked around the room, looking under toys and in his cupboards, a frown on his face. She knew he was looking for his _Transformer_. She'd found it earlier, under his bed, but she didn't tell him. She'd already decided that confiscating his prized possession for a month would be part of his punishment for his actions that day. Before he could sense her presence she turned away, making her way back down the stairs. She didn't want to have the conversation with him without Gibbs there and she didn't want to lie to him in the meantime about his action figure.

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Jenny was surprised to see her husband's car pull into the driveway at 5.30 that evening, just as the children were sitting down to dinner. He'd said he'd try to get away early but she'd assumed he wouldn't get back until nearer 7.00.

"Daddy!" Ellie greeted her father as he walked into the kitchen.

"Hey, pumpkin," he kissed the top of her head as he passed. "Hey, little man," he tousled his son's hair.

"Guess what, daddy?" Ellie chattered excitedly, not waiting for her father to answer before continuing. "Sarah's sleeping over tonight and then we get to spend all day together tomorrow!"

"I know, baby," Gibbs said, "Mommy told me. I just happened to pick up a copy of _Ratatouille_ on my way home. I don't suppose either of you girls want to watch it?"

"YES!" Ellie and Sarah nodded enthusiastically.

"Once you've finished dinner daddy will set it up on the TV in the den, okay?" Jen said, watching as the girls began to eat their pasta with a renewed vigor.

"Can I watch too?" Joel asked, pasta sauce smeared all over his face.

"Not tonight, kiddo," Jenny said, "It's just for Ellie's sleep over. Besides, Daddy and I need to have a little talk with you once you've eaten your pasta,"

Joel looked up at her, ready to protest but he saw the look on her face and thought better of it. Instead he sighed and half heartedly raised another forkful of pasta to his mouth.

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Ellie and Sarah were settled in the den watching their movie and Molly was sleeping in her crib. Jenny had helped Joel brush his teeth and change into his pajamas and was tucking him into bed when Gibbs appeared in the doorway. Jenny nodded for him to come in and he sat down on the bed as Jenny did the same on the other side.

"Now, Joel," Jenny began, "do you know why daddy and I want to talk to you tonight?"

The little boy didn't answer but nodded his head sadly.

"Can you tell me why?"

"'cos I taked one of daddy's tools to Show-and Tell,"

"And do you know why it was wrong?" Jenny probed, watching as her son's eyes darted back and forth from his father to her.

"'cos I didn't ask,"

"Not only because you didn't ask, Joel, but because the plane that you took is only for big people. It's very heavy and sharp and you could have hurt someone. Or yourself," she added.

"I wasn't gonna take the cover off," Joel said, his eyes brimming with tears. "I just wanted to tell them how daddy let's me help him sometimes wif his boat,"

"And you should know from helping me, that the plane isn't a toy," Gibbs said, as his son nodded his head again, fighting back the tears. "None of my tools are. That's why daddy is always with you down in the basement, so that you don't get hurt,"

"We're not very angry with you, Joel," Jenny assured him, reaching out to wipe his cheeks where the tears were now spilling forth. "But you need to learn that when you do something wrong then you get punished. So," she said, looking at Gibbs as she spoke, having not discussed this with him. "You won't be allowed to play with _Optimus Prime_ for a whole month AND you won't be allowed to help daddy with his boat again until you show us that you can be respectful of other people's things,"

Gibbs nodded in agreement. "Do you understand, Joel?"

Joel's bottom lip quivered but he managed to get out a small, 'Yes, daddy,"

Just then, Molly's cries echoed loudly down the hall and Jenny rose to go get her.

"I'll go," Gibbs said, motioning for her to stay and finish tucking their son in for the night.

"So, you won't do anything like that again, will you?" Jenny asked him as she reached out and brushed his hair off his forehead. He shook his head and Jenny gave him a soft smile. "Good boy," she leaned down and kissed his cheek simultaneously switching off the light on his bedside table. The night light in the power socket by the bed gave off a small glow, just enough that she could make out her son's face against the pillow. "I love you," she said.

"For always?"

"Of course," Jenny assured him as she headed towards the door.

"Pwomise?" came the little voice in the bed and she stopped and turned to face him.

"For always and always," she said, waiting until he had closed his eyes before leaving the room.

She found Gibbs downstairs, heating a bottle of milk for Molly who was settled on his hip.

"He okay?" he asked.

"Yeah," she replied.

"Do you think we were harsh enough? I mean, all we did was take away one of his toys,"

"And the privilege of spending time helping you with the boat. When you're his age there aren't many punishments that would seem harsher," Jenny reasoned and Gibbs saw her point.

"You have to admit though, it's pretty great that he knew not to take the safety cover off," Gibbs said and Jenny could hear a hint of pride in his voice.

"Yeah, pretty great," she agreed with a small smile. Jenny looked up at the clock on the kitchen wall. It was nearly half past 7. The girls' movie would be finished soon and then they'd have to deal with two girls on a sugar high, thanks to Gibbs' treat of ice cream sundaes. Jenny held out her arms to take Molly from her husband.

"Let me give her the bottle and get her settled," she said, waiting while he tested the temperature of the milk. He handed her the bottle. "I'll put her down and then we can have some dinner," she said before climbing the stairs to the nursery.

She settled herself in the glider by the window. Gibbs had bought her the oak chair when she was pregnant with Ellie and she'd nursed all three of her kids in it. Now that Molly was on solids, Jenny missed the bond that breast feeding gave her and so she liked to spend a little time giving her her evening bottles and reconnecting with the baby. She cradled Molly in her arms and looked on as her daughter suckled the bottle hungrily, watching her mother with her blue eyes. Jenny loved the weight of a baby in her arms and she lay her head back against the chair and just listened to her daughter breathe.

She must have fallen asleep because the next thing she heard was Gibbs calling her name softly. She opened her eyes and saw Gibbs crouching before her, gently shaking her awake. She smiled sleepily at him but the smile quickly faded as she looked past him and realized that she was no longer in the nursery. She could no longer feel the warm weight of Molly in her arms.

She was lying on a sofa in an office. Her office. She wasn't, she realized sadly, a mother of three but rather she was the head of a federal agency. She had long ago given up her chance of a family in order to fast track her career. She sighed softly.

"Are you okay?" Gibbs asked but she couldn't answer him. How could she tell him she was mourning the loss of a family that never was? The beautiful children she'd never nursed or cared for; the husband she'd created the beautiful family with, none of it was any more than a vivid dream brought on by an exhausting, demanding job.

"I'm fine. Just tired I guess," she eventually managed and she moved to sit up. Gibbs held out a hand to help her and she noticed the glimmer of gold on his left hand. As she stood, he reached out his other hand and Jenny looked down as he placed it gently on her swollen belly.

"Not long to go now," he smiled, as he rubbed his hand in a circular motion across her stomach.

_Of course!_ She thought, as her mind cleared of her dream and the reality came flooding back. She _had_ left Gibbs in Paris, intent on furthering her career and she'd made it to the top, becoming the first female Director of NCIS. She'd only been working with him again for a few months when all of the old feelings resurfaced. Jenny looked down at the rings on her own left hand and smiled.

"What are you smiling at?" he asked her, helping her on with her coat.

"I just had the best dream," she replied.

"Ah," he said, guiding her out of the office and towards the elevator. "I take it I was in it then," he teased and Jenny just nodded. _If only he knew_.

"Jethro," she stopped at the doors to the elevator. "I want to call him 'Joel',"

"How do you know it's going to be a boy?" he asked, as the doors opened and they stepped into the car.

Jenny thought of the little boy in her dreams.

"_I love you,"_

"_For always?"_

"_Of course,"_

"_Pwomise?"_

"_For always and always,"_

Jenny placed a hand on her belly, a knowing smile on her face. "It's a boy."

**Please review and let me know what you thought…not that I want to beg ;)**


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